Tuesday of the Tenth Week of Ordinary Time

Jesus has sent us Christians from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth to be salt and light. As Franciscans we friars feel the challenge of this mission with three different ministries: contemplation, community and apostolic ministry. We should be people of prayer, living in intense solidarity with one another, and acting in generous ways toward others. And the priests among us are called to leadership in the church. Whew! That’s a lot.

Saint Francis never did anything by halves and he was famously reluctant to neglect any of these obligations. He preached with incredible energy and zeal and, fortunately, was a talented speaker. He took delight in the company of his friars, accepting them as gifts of God. And he spent long days and nights in intense prayer, usually hungry, wet and cold. It worked for him! and he remains as the ideal Catholic until the end of time. He has been called the most Catholic of saints.

To neglect any of these three apostolates is to risk failure and scandal, but attempting them is equally perilous. Like everyone else on the planet, we friars and sisters of Saint Francis need close intimate relations with other people. Intimate doesn’t necessarily mean sexual or genital but it does mean “I know and am known to other people. They accept my frailty, foolishness and sinful failings as I accept theirs. We aspire to be saints but do not pretend to be saints with one another.”

We should love prayer: liturgical, devotional and solitary. It is our greatest privilege. It is comfort and nourishment, obligation and pleasure. If we are not people of prayer there is simply no point to our calling ourselves Christian.

Finally we are ready to serve others as Jesus served others. He insisted he had not come to be served but to serve. No one can practice every manner of service but everyone should “profess” at least one.

To be salt and light – to be Catholic – takes courage, energy and dedication. It is not for the faint of heart although we all feel faint of heart rather often. We run this race because Jesus has run ahead of us, confident that when we fall he’ll stop and pick us up.